The present invention relates to a method and to an apparatus for guiding a saw blade.
Saw blades such as circular saw blades or bandsaw blades are guided using so-called blade guides both in sawing machines with permanent settings and in sawing machines with variable settings. Solutions are known in which various metals and their mixtures are used as blade guides. A blade guide solution is presented in FI publication 67800. A drawback with prior-art solutions is that they need water or an emulsion of water and oil for lubrication. These are a source of problems especially when the temperature is below 0xc2x0 C. In addition, there are emulsions which have detrimental effects e.g. on the environment or health. A significant drawback is also the need for adjustment and maintenance due to wear.
The object of the present invention is to create a completely new type of method and apparatus for guiding a saw blade.
The invention is characterised by what is presented in the claims.
The method of the invention has numerous significant advantages. By forming a layer of ice as a guide surface, a very low friction coefficient is achieved, which substantially reduces the power loss and helps maintain a low blade temperature. The need for adjustment is diminished. The need for wearing parts is eliminated. The amount of water or emulsion consumed is substantially smaller than with prior-art blade guides. In a solution according to the method of the invention, the blade is cooled, with the result that, when a circular saw blade is used, a correct kind of stress state is generated in the blade.